Miami, etc, part THREE (the final chapter)

Hollywood, FL area.... Monday , July 9th

Dinner time!
I decide to drive over to The Ark Restaurant in Davie, on Stirlirg Rd
It's about 10 miles west of the ocean, and one town west of Hollywood.

They have prime rib and crab legs buffet for $22.99

This place is landlocked. The boat is just for show.

this is what I call "butter mountain"....

the maple walnut was my favorite....they are known for their homemade butters and breads.
I took a pic of their infamous crab legs, for those of you that like them. Almost everyone in there seemed to be chowing down on these crab legs. I pigged out on my prime rib and turkey.

you can tell the carved turkey is the real thing (even though it is blurry)...I had a crispy wing and some "not good for you" skin.
delicious!
The Ark has been open over 25 years, and it's my kind of place...as it's family owned, and NOT a chain... and I love the rustic decor...

at night I walked around downtown Hollywood... (here's the daytime view of it)....which was right outside my ramada plaza ..

next morning, Tuesday, July 10th ....back to Hallandale beach

it's July, so there is plenty of room to put down a beach towel!

for lunch I drove over to the Wings n' Curls in Hollywood

these wings really rock....and there were about a dozen tables occupied at 2 pm, which is a good sign. The lunch special, 12wings ,fries, and a soda, was only $7.80, a steal

ice cream time at Jaxsons in Dania , just south of Hollywood(homemade, of course) (or else, I don't usually bother)

I had the succulent choc. chip. It was about the best I ever had...real heavy butterfat flavor and lots of big choc. chunks.


time to play some poker. Went over to Gulfstream Park in Hallandale.
Beautiful poker room, with lots of plasma TV's , etc.


entrance to poker room. I played 1-2 $ no limit.
The horses were'nt racing..(not in season there)

July 11th : I had a nice uneventful morning flight back to Philly
I retrieved my car at the airport lot, and made a pit stop for lunch on my way home to the AC area
I ate at the Copabanana on "hip" South St. in Philly

I had a decent burger, and unique, yummy "spanish fries", with crispy jalapenos and onions. "bubble bread" is on the right, which the menu says "as served in the Bubble Room in Captiva, FL"...
my requisite (and just ok) wings are in the back



here's my new Miami maps on left, and my already owned maps on right.
my casino chips (from Gulfstream Park and Dania Jai Alai poker room)
are in the middle


thanks for sharing my trip with me!

-the end-

That buffet looks amazing! And butter mountain?!

Great pics - looks like a lot of fun!

I'm kinda partial to bikini pics, though.

How'dya do at the poker?

Wow....it was great to see all those wonderful pictures. I grew up in that area. The Ark....I remember going their with my family. It's great to know the food is still good. So much down there has changed, but it is nice to know some things still remain the same.

Butter mountain, holy Jesus lord, that looks good. The entire Ark looks wonderful. This is yet another destination I have to circle for my travels. I do have family in Sunrise, the next time I am there I am going to hit this place up.

quote:

Originally posted by kkrhmom

Wow....it was great to see all those wonderful pictures. I grew up in that area. The Ark....I remember going their with my family. It's great to know the food is still good. So much down there has changed, but it is nice to know some things still remain the same.

I'm glad I struck a chord with my Ark experience. I had'nt been there in 5 years or so, and I had just been to the lunch buffet that time.
So I did'nt really get the full experience.

I was pleasantly surprised and glad to see just how good they were doing !!
Apparently they also have internet coupons, "buy one , get one 40% off", and they e-mail customers with upcoming b-days to get free dinners. It ain't Vegas, as far as soft drinks go.........as those are extra.

But the most important thing is that the food is good! They still have their big salad deck with their homemade dressings.

www.thearkrestaurant.fla.com

Yes, it was SO nice to see a place I like still there, and not sold to a restaurant chain, or to a developer for condos !!!!!!

quote:

Originally posted by callmebruce

Great pics - looks like a lot of fun!

I'm kinda partial to bikini pics, though.

How'dya do at the poker?

I just went through about $20.00 at the poker table (we call that pretty much "breaking even") for about an hour of play..
I just wanted to get a "taste" of it. Was'nt in the mood for an
all-nighter.

I also played at the Dania Jai Alai poker facility, where they have about 50 poker tables. That result was minus $10.00

ellen,

I really enjoyed your description of your vacation and each and every picture you posted. I really felt like I was there, too. Thanks for taking the time to share you adventure with all of us!!

When is your next trip?

quote:

Originally posted by morningglory

ellen,

I really enjoyed your description of your vacation and each and every picture you posted. I really felt like I was there, too. Thanks for taking the time to share you adventure with all of us!!

When is your next trip?

hi, morning glory,
my next trip (unless one sneaks up before it) is the end of Aug. for a long weekend to the Catksills, NY. (the Sullivan County former "borchst belt"). Just a road trip, no air travel this time. I'll be part of the www.CatksillsInstitute.com 's weekend seminar on all things "catksill", lots of reminiscing, including an afternoon bus tour of Ellenville, named after me , of course.
That part of the Catskills (Sullivan County) is such a former shell of what it used to be....(the sad reality)

Actually, I probably will get up to NYC ( 2 and 1/2 hours away)
in a few weeks, just for a day trip. I just have to try that new Hill Country BBQ !!

ellen

p.s. always so nice to hear from you, Morning Glory!

Great trip report and pic's as usual Ellen. Did you really eat the whole thing?

And it does look like that burger has been nibbled on before the picture was taken....

VERY impressive map display, BTW!!

Excellent report and pics as always.

Do you know if La Sandwicheria is still open? I was there in 2001 and it was a great little place not far from the ocean, I don't recall where. Very good sandwiches on French bread (of course).

Thanks,

Kevin

Maybe someone can put together a Butter Tour lol. I'm telling you! I couldn't stop thinking about it when I saw those pics! I've not been to Miami since 1973...

John A wrote: ===Great trip report and pic's as usual Ellen. Did you really eat the whole thing?===


That is a hefty amount of eating in that photo. I am curious what is on those fries. Peppers or green onion?


mark

Great report as always. Photos are spectacular!

ellen,

I enjoyed this final report as much as the others. It appears that you enjoy working with a beach and beef theme.

mark

quote:

Originally posted by doggydaddy





That is a hefty amount of eating in that photo. I am curious what is on those fries. Peppers or green onion?


mark

those are jalapeno peppers on those spanish fries from the Copabanana
in Philly . They are fried up real crispy.

I'd definitely order those spanish fries again.

yes, it's a lot of eating, but my secret is that I don't finish everything..
I'll often have "half of this" and "half of that".... I'm a taster!!!

so when I can't decide , I get BOTH the wings and the chicken fingers!

p.s. "a beach and beef theme".........I like that , Mark !!

Thanks for the pictures and the great report. if i ever get a digital camera will have to post some pictures of places in my neck of the woods.
Never heard of spanish fries. Surprised no one has thought of that around here.Never really see potatoes on the menu of mexican and tex-mex places here in San Antonio.Might be more cuban and puerto rican.
Wow,that buffet with the prime ribs and crab legs sounds like heaven to me.Glad you had a great time.
As far as local malls here,most of the food is like Subway,etc.

My ex husband and I use to go to the Ark before we were married. That was my choice of place for dinner when I drove up to Hollywood to see him....I was so shocked to see you mention it.
I had totally forgot about that place, its been so long!
Thanks for more memories on my old stomping grounds, Ellen..

quote:

Originally posted by harriet1954

Maybe someone can put together a Butter Tour lol. I'm telling you! I couldn't stop thinking about it when I saw those pics! I've not been to Miami since 1973...

I'll be the first to sign up for that "butter tour"!
You've all heard of Space Mountain, well this is Butter Mountain!
(as MLK said "I have seen the mountaintop!")

Harriet, I tend to fly into Fort Lauderdale, and spend most of my time in Delray Beach, Boca, West Palm, and FLL.
For a change, I figured I would explore Miami proper, as well as Miami Beach, and a little north to Hollywood. I wanted to give Miami a little airtime.
I was in the mood to see some ugly parts of Miami, besides just pretty beaches. I like seeing the neighborhoods, etc.

quote:

Originally posted by KOK

Excellent report and pics as always.

Do you know if La Sandwicheria is still open? I was there in 2001 and it was a great little place not far from the ocean, I don't recall where. Very good sandwiches on French bread (of course).

Thanks,

Kevin

hi Kevin,
Is that place on the Hollywood Beach "broadwalk"? (as they call it)
I don't recall seeing the place, but I just did a quick walk on that broadwalk at night. I just remember a guitar player in a bar doing "Cats in the Cradle" type songs.

quote:

Originally posted by roossy90

My ex husband and I use to go to the Ark before we were married. That was my choice of place for dinner when I drove up to Hollywood to see him....I was so shocked to see you mention it.
I had totally forgot about that place, its been so long!
Thanks for more memories on my old stomping grounds, Ellen..

I'm glad the Ark stirred up some good memories of you and your ex
dining there. Good dinner choice, Roosy.
The whole atmosphere was so comfy and jovial in there. And the driftwood/rustic decor made me feel like I was back in the 70's...
(and that's a GOOD feeling) It felt like we were all in a big hunting lodge living room. And there was a nice mix of people in there; it was not a "stuffy" place.
If you ever go there again , it will be a real good feeling to see its' probably the same as when you left it last. How many places can you say that about?!?

I so much prefer these kind of places to the ones where people just pick at "rabbit food" salads.

The Ark has a pretty neat website , too....check it out...

ellen....

Ellen,
I do think that when we used to go there in the early and mid 80's, it was menu service, and not a buffet...
It has been a long time, so my memory may not be correct, but I swear it was menu....no matter what, It was great food at that time, and glad to know it still is.
Hmm... still the same place though, still the same location.
You say you hang in Delray area?
We also used to go to the Rod And Gun Restaurant in Delray on Atlantic Ave.... they used to have exotic meats there on the menu..Another wonderful dining experience.(IMHO)
Of course, its been 20 years since I have eaten there, and I am sure things might have changed, or it might not even be there anymore.
My ex-father in law still lives in Delray....

quote:

Originally posted by roossy90

Ellen,
I do think that when we used to go there in the early and mid 80's, it was menu service, and not a buffet...
It has been a long time, so my memory may not be correct, but I swear it was menu....no matter what, It was great food at that time, and glad to know it still is.
Hmm... still the same place though, still the same location.
You say you hang in Delray area?
We also used to go to the Rod And Gun Restaurant in Delray on Atlantic Ave.... they used to have exotic meats there on the menu..Another wonderful dining experience.(IMHO)
Of course, its been 20 years since I have eaten there, and I am sure things might have changed, or it might not even be there anymore.
My ex-father in law still lives in Delray....

The Ark may not have had a buffet back then. But I forgot to mention they do have menu service there, too, besides the buffet. (judging from the amount of people bouncing around, I don't think people came for the menu; they came to pig out on those crab legs!)
I was just too enthused with that buffet to even think about ordering from a menu .... I had to conquer "butter mountain"!

My aunt and uncle live in Delray at Kings Point. Perhaps that is where your ex father- in -law lives. It is a HUGE seniors development.
They love the pools and shows there. We saw Chubby Checker perform last year, for about $5.00. They are what is called "young seniors" as they are in their 70's. (they are even members of the young seniors club. At what point does one get "kicked out" of that club?!?)
But my aunt and uncle are up in NY state for the summer, trying to avoid the Florida summer heat.
So I stayed at motels this time.

quote:

Originally posted by ellen4641

quote:

Originally posted by KOK
Excellent report and pics as always.

Do you know if La Sandwicheria is still open? I was there in 2001 and it was a great little place not far from the ocean, I don't recall where. Very good sandwiches on French bread (of course).

Thanks,

Kevin

hi Kevin,

Is that place on the Hollywood Beach "broadwalk"? (as they call it)
I don't recall seeing the place, but I just did a quick walk on that broadwalk at night. I just remember a guitar player in a bar doing "Cats in the Cradle" type songs.

I should have realized this part of your series was for Hollywood, and not Miami. La Sandwicheria is in Miami (or was). When you say 'broadwalk' people not in the know try to correct you to boardwalk

In Hollywood, we went to Capone's Flicker Light for okay pizza, and also Hot Dog Heaven (by the giant flea market w/ the movie theater) for excellent Chicago style dogs and Italian beef. Also went to a place (I think near where Brian Picollo went to high school - I'm old) called De Salvo's that's a small Italian chain and they had fantastic garlic knots.

Thanks,

Kevin

quote:

Originally posted by ellen4641

quote:

Originally posted by roossy90

Ellen,
I do think that when we used to go there in the early and mid 80's, it was menu service, and not a buffet...
It has been a long time, so my memory may not be correct, but I swear it was menu....no matter what, It was great food at that time, and glad to know it still is.
Hmm... still the same place though, still the same location.
You say you hang in Delray area?
We also used to go to the Rod And Gun Restaurant in Delray on Atlantic Ave.... they used to have exotic meats there on the menu..Another wonderful dining experience.(IMHO)
Of course, its been 20 years since I have eaten there, and I am sure things might have changed, or it might not even be there anymore.
My ex-father in law still lives in Delray....

The Ark may not have had a buffet back then. But I forgot to mention they do have menu service there, too, besides the buffet. (judging from the amount of people bouncing around, I don't think people came for the menu; they came to pig out on those crab legs!)
I was just too enthused with that buffet to even think about ordering from a menu .... I had to conquer "butter mountain"!

My aunt and uncle live in Delray at Kings Point. Perhaps that is where your ex father- in -law lives. It is a HUGE seniors development.
They love the pools and shows there. We saw Chubby Checker perform last year, for about $5.00. They are what is called "young seniors" as they are in their 70's. (they are even members of the young seniors club. At what point does one get "kicked out" of that club?!?)
But my aunt and uncle are up in NY state for the summer, trying to avoid the Florida summer heat.
So I stayed at motels this time.

Ellen,
The Ex-father in law lives closer to I-95..The "Older" section of Delray.. I have a friend that lives in Kings Point though-how she got in there is beyond me.. She was 40 when she moved there, and why is even more beyond me.......You are right.. It is HUGE, as all the other ones are.....